Category: Sports News

Go Rays!

The Dodgers are four for four against the Reds this year, all in the previous eight days. On Tuesday night they try a drive for five.

Tuesday game info

• Teams: Dodgers at Reds
• Ballpark: Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati
• Start time: 3:40 p.m. PT
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

Leave it to the White Sox to save all of the dramatics for the end of the season. The South Side offense finally came back to life in Monday’s series opener against the Guardians, allowing Chicago to not only secure a win when it severely needed, but give it the tiebreaker against Cleveland on the season series as the rivals battle through an AL Central division race that is way too close for comfort.

Of course, we as Sox fans can continue to relish even getting to play meaningful baseball games after three (four, really) disappointing seasons, but I’m sure many can agree that coming up short after such an exciting, magical season would be a gut-punch. Thankfully, the South Siders have put themselves in a great position to close out the division race with the tiebreaker, but defeating the Guardians outright is the best way to ensure they can snag a spot in the postseason.

Before we dive into the lineups for tonight’s game, let’s check in on some roster updates. After Monday’s game, the White Sox announced that righthander Tyler Davis was reinstated from the Bereavement/Family Medical Emergency list, but was optioned back to the Triple-A Charlotte Knights. The righty has been mostly solid out of the bullpen despite a rough few outings in June, and in 29 games (30 2/3 innings) with the big league club, Davis has posted a 3.52 ERA and a 1.174 WHIP alongside a .190 opponent batting average. He’s also scoreless in his last eight outings (eight IP) dating back to June 20, so it’s not out of the realm of possibility that we see Davis again this season.

The biggest news of the day is that the South Siders have recalled left-handed pitcher Noah Schultz from Triple-A and designated José Urquidy for assignment as the corresponding move. In six games (22 1/3 frames) for the White Sox the righty posted a 2-1 record and a 4.37 ERA, which looks much better on paper than the performance in real life. Despite a couple decent outings, and one incredible performance at Wrigley Field during the Crosstown Classic, Urquidy has been a bit of a loose cannon both as a starter and out of the bullpen. It’s unclear if Urquidy will clear waivers or what the next steps are there, but bringing Schultz up could be key with a struggling starting rotation.

In 15 outings with the White Sox, Schultz had accumulated a 6.06 ERA prior to being demoted to Triple-A, but in his last five starts for the Knights, he’s surrendered just three earned across his 21 2/3 innings with 10 Ks.

As for tonight’s game, lefthander Chris Murphy will be the opener in the second game of the series in Cleveland. The Good Guys are leveraging an opener in back-to-back games, as Davis Martin will own the bulk role on Tuesday. Using an opener while running a rough right-handed heavy lineup in a playoff race feels entirely unserious, but to Will Venable’s credit the White Sox absolutely suck at pitching in the first inning. As a team, the White Sox pitching staff ranks as the fourth-worst ERA (5.58), third-highest opponent SLG (.492) in baseball, and have surrendered the second-most home runs in the first inning of games.

When looking at every other inning, the White Sox hold the 10th-best ERA (3.92), opponent batting average (.237), and opponent SLG (.383). We can’t be sure what causes them to implode so much early, but perhaps we should just stop questioning the opener at this point, especially considering how great Sean Burke was in Monday’s matchup after a horrific outing in the start prior.

Murphy holds a 3.94 ERA in his 31 appearances (32 innings), and has worked as an opener two other times this season. Unlike the dominance that Sean Newcomb has displayed in pretty much every situation, Murphy hasn’t been as strong when used as an opener. While it’s a small, two-inning sample size, Murphy has posted a 13.50 ERA and surrendered three earned runs on three hits, including a home run and a double.

Righthander Davis Martin has solely pitched as a starter this season, holding a 4.05 ERA in 26 outings and 135 2/3 innings. Davis had started to struggled in July, and those struggles persisted into August, posting a 14.63 ERA in three outings before landing on the IL. Since being reactivated this month though, Martin holds a 0.84 ERA in his last pair of starts, tossing for at least five frames both times (10 2/3 total) and letting up just one run, on a solo homer against the Pittsburgh Pirates last week.

Given the left-handed Foster Griffin is making the start for the Guardians, the South Siders are rolling with their right-handed lineup — not their strongest. Chase Meidroth slots into the leadoff spot, essentially swapping places in the lineup with Sam Antonacci, who is batting sixth. Meidroth does hold the highest OPS (.859) among White Sox leadoff hitters, however, and is slashing .273/.359/.500 in 170 PAs.

The lefty-mashing Randal Grichuk will slide into the 2-hole, which is very apt considering his 1.061 OPS in 133 PAs against them, along with nine homers and 21 RBIs. After a bit of a rough week defensively, Colson Montgomery is getting a needed game off, and Luisangel Acuña will take over at shortstop and bat eighth. My one real gripe with tonight’s batting order is that Brenton Doyle is batting fifth in a playoff race, and he should really never bat higher than eighth, if at all, considering how he’s been at the plate.

Chicago White Sox Lineup

Griffin will make his 29th start of the season, posting a 3.65 cumulative ERA across 162 2/3 innings this season. Prior to getting traded to the Guardians, Griffin held a 3.06 ERA in 22 outings with the Washington Nationals. However, he’s not been as strong since being dealt to Cleveland. In his last seven outings with the Guardians, the lefty owns a 5.94 ERA in 33 1/3 innings with a 1.59 WHIP and elevated .299 opponent BA. Griffin is coming off a brutal outing against the Baltimore Orioles in which he yielded eight earned runs, so it would be fabulous if the South Siders could attack early and pile up some runs behind their pitchers.

For the most part, Cleveland’s batting order is similar to Monday’s series opener, though Travis Bazzana will DH today while Angel Genao takes over at second base. Chase DeLauter is also getting a night off after a tough offensive performance yesterday where he grounded into not one, but two identical double plays to bail the White Sox out of some jams. The Good Guys were able to hold off the top of the order quite a bit yesterday, but both Steven Kwan and José Ramírez are known to beat up on the Sox, so it’s still going to be a challenge to keep them from mashing the ball.

Cleveland Guardians Lineup

It looks like it should be a beautiful evening for an AL Central battle, with temperatures in the low-80s and clear skies. We have another earlier game lined up, with first pitch taking place at 5:40 p.m. CT at Progressive Field. Tune into CHSN for the TV broadcast, or listen in on the radio at ESPN Chicago AM 1000. Time to snag a series W.

The Nats get a chance to play spoiler in a midweek showdown with the Phillies. After a sweep of the Angels, the boys are riding high. However, they will be facing tougher opposition this week. The Nats will need to avoid some of the mistakes and tighten things up if they want another sweep.

For some reason both James Wood and CJ Abrams are out of the lineup today. The Phillies do have a lefty on the mound, but those two have been everyday players all season long. Daylen Lile is also out of the lineup. That means the outfield is Andrew Pinckney, Jacob Young and Dylan Crews. Nasim Nunez is back in the fold as the starting shortstop. Jackson Kent will be on the mound tonight.

We know most of the big names in this Phillies lineup. The top 3 of Schwarber, Turner and Harper is well established. Luis Arraez has been a good fit in the cleanup spot as well. Nationals killer Derek Hill is at the bottom of the order and in center field. Ace Cristopher Sanchez will be on the bump.

Game Info:

Stadium: Nationals Park

Time: 6:45 PM EST

TV: Nationals.TV

Radio: 106.7 The Fan

Without Abrams or Wood, offense will be tough to come by. However, if we can keep the game close early on, those two and Lile can be threats off the bench. Being a spoiler should be a role we embrace and it starts tonight. Follow along in the comments down below and let’s go Nats!

Discuss the game below

The Colorado Rockies announced today that they have reinstated LHP Kyle Freeland from the 15-day injured list ahead of this evening’s game against the San Diego Padres.

Freeland was originally placed on the IL on August 24 after suffering from cervical radiculopathy (a pinched nerve in his neck). The injury occurred on August 19 against the Los Angeles Dodgers, after Freeland threw just 3.2 innings and allowed four runs on six hits with two homers, a walk and two strikeouts. He will start tonight’s game and should be able to pitch two more games in 2026 — one at home and one on the road.

To make room for Freeland, RHP Blas Castaño has been optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque. Castaño was recalled from the Isotopes when the rosters expanded on September 1, and made five appearances in September. Across 6.2 innings, he allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits with three walks and four strikeouts.

In addition, the Rockies did some shuffling in the field.

Catcher/DH Braxton Fulford was recalled and infielder Vimael Machín was optioned. Machín was brought up on September 5 and played in three games for the Rockies. In those three games, he went 3-for-6 with two strikeouts.

Fulford returns to the majors after being optioned on August 25. In 13 games with the Isotopes in that span, Fulford has gone 10-for-49 (.204) with two doubles, three home runs, six RBI, two walks and 17 strikeouts. In 43 games with the Rockies this year, Fulford has slashed just .174/.253/.275 with four doubles, one home run, 12 runs scored, seven RBI, seven walks and 31 strikeouts.

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Mets lineup

Francisco Lindor – SS
Juan Soto – LF
Bo Bichette – 3B
Carson Benge – RF
Jared Young – 1B
Marcus Semien – 2B
A.J. Ewing – CF
Brett Baty – DH
Francisco Alvarez – C

SP: Sean Manaea (LHP)

Orioles lineup

Rece Hinds – LF
Pete Alonso – 1B
Coby Mayo – DH
Christian Encarnacion-Strand – 3B
Gunnar Henderson – SS
Jeremiah Jackson – 2B
Yohel Pozo – C
Leody Taveras – RF
Colton Cowser – CF

SP: Shane Baz (RHP)

Broadcast info

First pitch: 7:10 PM EDT
TV: SNY
Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2

The Astros are heading into the stretch run of the AL West race with the infield they already have, not the one they hoped they would. Manager Joe Espada told reporters Tuesday that Carlos Correa will not return this season, closing the door on a comeback that four days earlier had Houston's front office mapping out where to play him.

Espada told reporters that Correa did not have a setback, but the workload to get back into game shape was too much for a season that has less than two weeks left.

Correa tore the peroneus brevis tendon in his left ankle in May, a tendon that helps stabilize the outside of the ankle, and needed surgery. He had played just 32 games, with three home runs, 16 RBI and a .369 on-base percentage. He was told then that his season was over, but he chose not to believe it.

He kept working his way back: running the bases, taking live batting practice and fielding ground balls through the summer. On Sept. 12, a report had the Astros planning to bring him back at second base rather than third, a move that would have pushed Jose Altuve to DH and left Jeremy Pena at shortstop and Isaac Paredes at third.

That plan is dead now.

The Braves have managed Ronald Acuña Jr. carefully since his return from a second injured list stint this season due to a left hamstring strain

That plan has included mixing in days for Acuña as designated hitter, a role he will fill for the second time in three days when the Braves continue their three-game series at the Chicago Cubs Tuesday at 7:40 p.m. EDT.

Mauricio Dubón is also back at shortstop and hitting fifth, while Brewer Hicklen makes a somewhat rare start, hitting ninth and playing right field for Game 2 of the series.

Also of note, Ozzie Albies is down to the eighth spot in the batting order against a right-handed starting pitcher for Chicago.

The Cubs waited until nearly 6 p.m. EDT (over two hours after the Braves’ lineup was posted) to release their lineup.

No major surprises in there. Michael Busch drops from third to sixth against a left-handed starter. Tyrone Taylor, acquired from the Mets in the David Peterson trade, is batting cleanup and playing left field. Matt Shaw replaces Michael Conforto as DH in the seven-hole, and Miguele Amaya replaces at the bottom of the lineup and behind the plate.

The active Braves have a combined 100 career at-bats against Cubs starter Kevin Gausman, hitting .240 against him with just three walks and 22 strikeouts. The slugging percentage, though, is a more respectable. 450.

Of Atlanta’s six all-time homers against the right-hander, Matt Olson (6-for-19) has three of them, making this a possible night for him to hit homer No. 40. Austin Riley (4-for-9, one homer), Dubón (3-for-9, one homer) and Mike Yastrzemski (3-for-9, one homer) have all had success against Gausman as well, while Albies (1-for-7), Michael Harris II (2-for-9) and Ha-Seong Kim (0-for-6) have had less.

Of the Cubs’ hitters 77 all-time at-bats against Braves starter Martín Pérez, Alex Bregman has over half of them (42, to be exact). He’s 10-for-42 (.238) against Pérez with just one extra-base hit (a double) and one RBI. However, he does have a 373 on-base percentage behind nearly twice as many walks (nine) as strikeouts (five).

Overall, Chicago’s hitters are 15-for-77 (.195) against Perez. No one has had much success against him, with Taylor (2-for-7) posting the best batting average against him at .286. The current Cubs have never hit a homer off Pérez and have just four RBIs against him.

Elly De La Cruz is truly ascending into Tungsten Arm O’Doyle territory of late.

Monday night saw him completely destroy a baseball, one that was conservatively estimated at 457 feet as it buzzed past the power stacks in left-center field in Great American Ball Park en route to exiting the stadium altogether. It was reminiscent of the superblast he hit from the other side of the plate off Los Angeles Dodgers ace Tarik Skubal just a week ago, feats of strength irreplicable by just about any other sole on the planet.

The Cincinnati Reds lost last night, though. Elly’s homer was their lone run in a 4-1 loss to those very same Dodgers, a loss that officially eliminated the Reds from any miracle chance at a spot in the postseason. It also sunk them to 10 full games under .500 at 70-80, and this season is rapidly deteriorating into yet another one to forget and chuck onto the scrap-heap of memories of this once proud franchise.

I digress.

Rhett Lowder has a lot to improve upon as he heads into a vital offseason for his overall development. Anything short of a rapid change of form means the Reds need to build in even more redundancy in their starting depth plans for 2027, and there’s been precious little in the way of advancement from their former 1st round pick so far in his own disappointing 2026. He’ll get the start tonight, while the Dodgers will counter with Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

First pitch in GABP is set for 6:40 PM ET. Here’s how both teams will line up: